"A Truthful Conditional;" Sermon for January 31st, 2015 by Rev. Nicole A.M. Collins, FODM

Let your life be a sermon, a testimony of God’s love realized and incorporated in your life! Say it, Live it & Give it!

Spiritual warfare however can and will definitely fight you over allowing this to even come to fruition.  This is the path we have chosen, those who call themselves disciples of Jesus.  It is operated by and through a journey to love unconditionally.

Wow, that’s just as mind blowing to truthfully contemplate as the Beatitudes of Jesus.  They were of an authority and conditional that we still don’t really understand yet alone can truly incorporate.  There are hints though around us in seeing unconditional love even in the simplest of things… For example, every evening I look forward to time with my cats.  Let me tell you, cats DO as well as other innocent creatures show great love.

Love just like happiness are Pandora’s boxes of confusion, stumbling blocks and places the Evil One will go to battle within you to try to sabotage and destroy. Speaking for myself, for years, happiness has been one of those complex battlegrounds. A Battleground that as a disciple of Jesus, Satan has tried to win a victory over and crush my spirits.  Despair and having no faith in yourself can burgeon a great unhappiness yet alone confusion over purpose and your place on the journey of the long and winding road of your calling from God.

Perhaps the Old Nature has made a conditional within the heart to doubt and despair… Whoever said being a Soldier for Christ would ever be easy yet alone not require a commitment to service?  Are you used to being served or do you truly and truthfully live into serving others for the Glory of God?  Being Justified by Faith through Grace isn’t enough—the seed must be reaped through your life’s response! And only to those who operate through the ego—do you misunderstand this as works righteousness.  God’s plans and our hands and hearts are not to be agenda based!

We must prayerfully hear St. Paul’s Words deeply in that transforming battleground of the heart: “^12a For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face.” Standing firm in God’s love is a lifetime’s journey of struggling against evil, against all that imprisons and drags us down… Love is the most powerful authority God has not only exampled to us through Christ Jesus but something we don’t need to be conditional about!

When I think of innocence and love as a newly forming postulant in the Franciscan Order of Divine Mercy…  I’ve been reflecting on two things.  The first being the beauty and innocence of God’s creatures and how they try to survive around us and our graceless behavior… St. Francis was a lover of animals and went out of his way to care for God’s creatures as a part of his calling to share love. The second item I have been reflecting upon is the notion of “Divine Mercy.”

Mercy is Compassion, Compassion is empathy but what binds these words together is that they are adjectives for a love that goes beyond our human understanding to truthfully achieve: agape Love—unconditional love. If those tears of struggling can’t bear hope any longer for the future yet alone realize the ultimate goal and purpose of loving God and neighbor… then the Evil One is winning the spiritual battle.

It is hard to go outside of yourself to see, experience, realize the world around you as a place needing your love, care, concern, peace, mercy, kindness…  St. Francis wants us to live into what I mentioned in last week’s sermon—to be an empty vessel repurposed for the Lord’s use—Be and become not only an instrument of His Peace incorporated prayerfully into your life but to be convicted in serving. 

The Evil One as “spirits” as anyone suffering from alcoholism or having family members with an alcohol addiction know; your resolve to live into your faith is challenged.  Faith is challenged all the time and the face of evil is hard to see but does show its ugly face or bear its ugly fruit from time to time when you are being tested.  We are not to be caving into ourselves where we become islands unto ourselves and only serve others for our own agendas and goals.

This would only prove to be a path into a wilderness you may not be able to escape from during your lifetime.  Then what purpose does life serve?  How awful a thought, how personally destructive!  This reminds me of the wonderful book about the two natures—the Old and the New: “Adjust or Self Destruct,” by LCMS Pastor Craig Massey. The very conclusion from his first chapter speaks and rejoices in the truth of today’s lessons: “When a person receives Christ, the Old Nature (Old man/ Old woman) is crucified with Him on Calvary and a new creation takes place.  With that New Creation, a battle begins as the Old Nature and the New Nature compete for control.  If the Old Nature goes unchecked, the Christian life falls apart.  The Christian becomes sinful, guilt-ridden, negative, depressive…  When the New Nature is kept healthy… an exhilarating faith, love, joy and peace become the believer’s experience.”

Reverend Massey’s theology in this book may be overly simplifying the road we all must face but speaking the truth in, through love is a harsh one that reveals an even greater truth, an even greater need! We are definitely predestined but a destination that is to love and serve—no strings attached, also meaning, no conditionals but to BE and DO as a child of Grace and Promise!

Today’s Gospel reveals the hidden voice of evil that lashes out at Jesus through a young man with an unclean spirit: ³⁴“Let us alone! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.”  The amazing authoritative power of Jesus’ Words, of Jesus’ love not only rebukes the spirits but restores the young man back to health.

We all confront evil in some form or another in our daily lives and at those moments when you see in your heart God’s tears as a healing balm to your soul is when you know that He has won another victory against Satan for control of your journey! These are those moments as well that help shape our hearts to KNOW God’s unconditional love for us and promise to us that He walks with us—we are never alone, we are never forsaken! And I say—

Thanks be to God and truly Hallelujah!

In a few days it will once again be Groundhog’s Day and that time of year I will be enjoying watching one of my all-time favorite films—Groundhog’s Day with Bill Murray.  Hard to believe that film is actually 23 years old… but a timeless comedy classic to see someone struggle to change.  As the movie goes, Phil Connors magically and almost sadistically relives the same day over and over till he finally has a complete epiphany to change his whole entire life for the better!

At first of course, the emotional roller coaster of doubts, despair, anger and all his fears hit him one after the other once he goes through this ridiculously funny “hiccup” of one ironic day—Groundhog’s day. Does Phil Connors’ see his shadow?  Yes he does—the shadow and darkness of his pain and spiritual struggles…  Does Phil Connors eventually see the light? Yes he does!

The profound aspect or power of the film for me comes when after he commits several failed suicide attempts to “kill” off all he’s spiritually battling with… he realizes he needs to love.  Phil Connors not only has to love himself (as God wants us to love ourselves) but he realizes that he needs to love and falls in love with Rita.  His entire personality, his entire being does in fact live into that wonderful image from the beginning of my sermon: “Let your life be a sermon, a testimony of God’s love realized and incorporated in your life! Say it, Live it & Give it!”

Saying it to live, living it for God and neighbor by giving all that you can be in the face of evil, sorrow and darkness is something I have to gird up for…  Others may pay no heed to what you do or take you seriously but remember, it’s not about you!  Being a disciple of Jesus is a mission and sometimes those days are going to “hiccup” with impatience, despair, sadness and pain…  But remember what St. Paul has said about love: “⁴Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant ⁵or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; ⁶it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. ⁷It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

Do the world a favor, look inwardly through prayer—are you where God needs you to be?  Who’s winning the battle?

Let us Pray:

Gracious Lord Jesus,

I must remember always

That You are my mighty Fortress

You do walk with me as I keep on, keeping on

Help me to fully realize and reap that New Nature

You have given as the greatest gift of Your Grace

Help me to faithfully gird my heart to battle against the Evil One’s Temptations

May I truly Be and Become an instrument of Your Peace, Love and Hope

In this dark and challenging world.

In Your most precious and healing Name I pray to You daily—

AMEN

January 31st, 2016; 4th Sunday after the Epiphany; Year C; SOLA Lectionary

Sermon by: Reverend Nicole A. M. Collins, FODM

Psalm 71:1-11; Jeremiah 1:4-10, 17-19; 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13 & Luke 4:31-44

Below is a link to this morning's delivery at the Grace Hub Lutheran Orthodox House church service at 8am:

https://youtu.be/xd5_HzAxl6U

"Never Say Never;" Witness by Reverend Nicole A.M. Collins, pos. FODM

Never say never is the new years’ resolution I am sticking to even if family genes are fighting me tooth and nail not to! My grandmother on my dad’s side, God rest her soul, was always negative about everything and anything. If the sun was shining she’s find something about it to complain about… Some people says that naturally happens to old shrinking (in height, not stature!) Sicilian women but I think it could happen from making your way through a hard life and never truly seeing God’s miraculous work throughout the journey!

She was a fighter & I’ll always admire her for that because that is the positive family trait I got from her!  My dad’s a fighter too. I am a fighter who had to have a dear friend remind me ever so often: “Don’t be a Job!” She’s right, easier said than done but then here I am a year later, a Lutheran pastor serving a wonderful tiny little church plant, the Gathering North, as the pastor of Spiritual Formation! I have also enjoyed venturing into planting an even tinier house church called the Grace Hub.

Spiritual formation is the whole ball of wax to the Christian journey, especially if you want to truly serve, live into your conversion. Conversion is what got me into trouble in the first place~ BUT it saved me from an empty life grasping for “delusions of grandeur.” A note of trivia here, but eventually that will be the title of my auto-biography to be finished and under 500 pages by the time of my death!  Conversion is the beginning of the heart’s training into becoming a disciple of Christ.

The wonderful song from the movie ‘Godspell;’ ‘All Good Gifts,” is one I not only had performed at my ordination but one that captures that positive and profound hope I need to fuel my on-going journey.  It is a song bubbling over with Grace from the first lines to the last lines of the song.

“We plow the fields and scatter the good seed on the land.

But it is fed and watered by God's almighty hand.

He sends the snow in winter, the warmth to swell the grain...

The breezes and the sunshine, and soft refreshing rain...

All good gifts around us

Are sent from Heaven above

Then thank the Lord, oh thank the Lord for all his love...

We thank thee then, O Father, for all things bright and good,

The seedtime and the harvest, our life, our health, our food,

No gifts have we to offer for all thy love imparts

But that which thou desirest, our humble thankful hearts!

All good gifts around us

Are sent from Heaven above

Then thank the Lord, oh thank the Lord for all his love

I really wanna thank you Lord

I want to thank you

thank you for all of your love

Oh thank you lord

oh lord”

At my ordination, my dear friend Beau, a very talented musician sang and performed this song that I needed to have played at the very beginning of that service.  Because it’s true, all good gifts around DO come from God, out of His love and Grace for us!  I have to hear that over and over to remind me to truly live into: “never say never!”

The song I heard at my conversion that fateful summer of 2003 was one that spoke about the Holy Spirit. ‘Spirit, Spirit of Gentleness.’ It was here that my heart heard God’s voice calling me.  God’s voice called me to do something crazy!  After about 12 something years of being out of school & suffering the crazy Chicago art scene; I decided to go to seminary the fall of 2008.

Never say never struggled to be heard mind you, since the 1^st part of my journey there was very negative BUT I’m not going to go there because we must, all of us, focus on what the light of Christ means and is DOING in all of our lives at every waking moment of the day! The mini miracle there came through my mentoring pastor who through God’s help rescued me from those days of playing the Grateful Dead’s tune: “Friend of the Devil” in the 1^st seminary’s parking lot while I would wind up crying before I parked and went in to classes.

It was upon his encouragement that I transferred to TEDS—Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.  A Lutheran in an Evangelical seminary~ now we’re in trouble! J Yes, there was a little too much Calvinism but I thank Exhedrin and the Book of Concord to balance out the theological differences in order to graduate! That was another moment of never saying never or the miracle of God’s grace working in my life. Greek, the language became my only trial at TEDS where successfully failing 3 classes even with a tutor…  I waved the white surrender flag & changed my MDiv (Master of Divinity) into a dual equivalency program of a MAM (Master of Arts in Ministry) & a MACS (Master of Arts in Christian Studies).

The miracle with that switch was studying and practicing pastoral leadership and counseling. Let me tell you, I think all Lutherans could greatly benefit from a little more Evangelicalism in their journey! I know I did and that school as well was continually encouraging giving me a few scholarships for preaching and church planting! TEDS was like the cherry at the top of a difficult dish to tackle.

Never saying never was once again the next hurdle after graduation, for the Lutheran world definitely has NOT been kind to me much at all… from “evil” in candidacy committees to a “sabotaged” 1^st call just recently to Oregon this past December! Yes, it was very painful but just like my dad and my grandmother; I will always be a fighter!  For now I have a great reason to keep on, keeping on!  Not only serving as I am but with a great hope for the future.

My whole journey as a disciple of Jesus has been about living into fulfilling that 1^st and most important commandment—Love God & love my neighbor.  I do love to care for people.  I have been lightly employed through Visiting Angels beginning to answer that call.  This coming Tuesday, I am looking forward to interviewing with a social services-type non-for profit ministry near to our new apartment that would have me in essence, being the chaplain to children with emotional disabilities.

If I see the glass half empty, I would be bewildered in it not being exactly what I was hoping to do as a pastor…  But then I’d be going back into what I saw and experienced as a Fine Artist; no I never got to get into the “big” galleries… or really sell my art or teach where I wanted to teach… BUT God’s Grace led me here! My heart was being groomed and shaped to be a minister to His Good News! Amen, Hallelujah!

All Good Gifts are from a God who journeys with us.  His Holy Spirit walks with us, even carries us through those difficult times when we want what we want but never get it!  Never get the miracles He does every day in even the smallest of things! My wonderful husband Phil, God continues to help me realize his continual blessing in my life.  The other day, he came back from his last Libertyville Township trustee meeting with a plaque and his name tag.  I then truly knew what a beautiful sacrifice he made for me in giving up his seat since we had to move…

Moving is as mentioned in a couple of sermons this past month is definitely ALL about struggling through change!  900 something boxes later and a lot of “Jenga” training in order to stuff your life into a new space… We ARE truly in our new apartment! Looking out to a vast horizon facing south where you can see both the sun rise and close the day…  God has truly amazing things to continue to encourage and teach me!

A year later since those hands were laid upon me and I was consecrated… the tears I should cry now need to be never saying never to God—always persevering in a hope that perhaps is still beyond my understanding BUT I must go forward for not my sake but His will and purposes!  His voice has never stopped encouraging my heart to grow, only people! We must listen prayerfully and deeply to the Lord’s calling to each and every one of us for it’s important.

We could naturally allow the evil one to control our road to fall into despair and hopelessness OR we can truly marry our hearts to His Gospel imperative: LIVE it, and GIVE it!!

I will leave you with the song from my conversion:

“Spirit, Spirit of gentleness,

blow through the wilderness calling and free,

Spirit, Spirit of restlessness,

stir me from placidness,

wind, wind on the sea.

You moved on the waters,

you called to the deep,

then you coaxed up the mountains

from the valleys of sleep;

and over the eons you called to each thing:

"Awake from your slumbers

and rise on your wings."

You swept through the desert,

you stung with the sand,

and you goaded your people with a law and a land;

and when they were blinded

with idols and lies,

then you spoke through your prophets

to open their eyes.

You sang in a stable,

you cried from a hill,

then you whispered in silence

when the whole world was still;

and down in the city

you called once again,

when you blew through your people

on the rush of the wind.

You call from tomorrow,

you break ancient schemes.

From the bondage of sorrow

all the captives dream dreams;

our women see visions,

our men clear their eyes.

With bold new decisions

your people arise.

January 17th, 2016; 2nd Sunday after Epiphany; Year C; SOLA Lectionary

Witness by Reverend Nicole A.M. Collins, pos. FODM

Psalm 128; Isaiah 62:1-5; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 & John 2:1-11

Below is a link from my ordination:

https://www.facebook.com/NicoleAMCollins/videos/10205361287978936/ 

 

"New or Nothin;'" Sermon for January 10th, 2016 by Rev. Nicole A.M. Collins, pos FODM

Heard a funny dialogue on the radio this past week in regards to teaching children.  They were talking about initial instruction on ethics with young children.  Ethics in today’s day and age is both very secular as well as limited to political correctness.  The radio host went on to say what a blessing it was to teach the concept of liking someone or something to her young impressionable daughter.

In that same train of thought I was wondering if she would then be teaching her to be “tolerant” in the same breath. Now don’t get me wrong, the concept of “like” as well as the concept of “tolerance” is ok but they both only go so far don’t they? What about love and acceptance?  Sounding like St. Paul here but—“What then are we to say?” To add to his train of thought—what then are we to BE and DO if we can’t go there? What do I mean by that—that we can’t or wouldn’t broach the subject essentially with a ten foot pole!

The New Nature is a great threat to the ego as well as to the established culture and gospel of the un-holy trinity of I, Me & Mine! But if we can’t go there in truly loving God and neighbor… are we not then failing the Gospel?  The Gospel given as a gift of redemption to God’s children of Grace and Promise in hopes that we live into, put on, and step boldly into that New Nature and its future!

Living into truthfully that is, the New Nature, is going to be violent.  What do I mean in saying that? Violent in the sense of, or to speak in cultural terms, something I believe in: Political correctness must die!  Violent in the other sense that we are being compelled with anticipation by the Gospel of Christ to lay down the ego as a sacrifice—a humble and willing propitiation to the Sovereign Lord who gave His life on that mercy seat to save us from the unquenchable fires….

The season or times of contemplation that Epiphany brings us is not only beginning to see the true nature of ministry for all of us as the priesthood of all believers, but to see God’s ministry on our behalf to enact inner transformation.  To change inwardly threatens the ruler of this world’s hold upon us that is all about us!  How can we love God and neighbor truly and truthfully if we limit and control how much or how far we are willing to give?  Isn’t this the nature of faith, discipleship in the first place?

The voice of God is still speaking… however, whether we choose to listen is the battle ground.  Some listen but hear what they want to hear and disregard the rest—sound familiar?  That last sentence reminded me of the old Simon and Garfunkel song—“The Boxer.”  It’s funny how a lot of ‘60’s songs inadvertently have Christian motifs to them such as this one.

The song begins to paint the story of the boxer’s life like our daily battle between the ego and God’s will: “I have squandered my resistance… For a pocketful of mumbles. Such are promises—All lies and jest—still, a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest.”

Another excerpt from the song take us into the violence of the inward battle itself: Now the years are rolling by me

They are rocking evenly—And I am older than I once was, and younger than I'll be… but that's not unusual…

No, it isn't strange, after changes upon changes—We are more or less the same…”  What this is saying in essence confesses that we are not perfect, we are both saint and sinner—we can however, aspire beyond ourselves… This is really scary and truly sacrificial!

We find ourselves at times struggling in our faith, through this life as disciples of Jesus a lot like the Boxer in this song for we struggle to stand firm for the Gospel, for Christ: “In the clearing stands a boxer—And a fighter by his trade, and he carries the reminders of every glove that laid him down, and cut him till he cried out in his anger and his shame: "I am leaving, I am leaving" But the fighter still remains…”

The Old Nature wants you to surrender… not to Christ mind you, but for the sake of the self since once again echoing St. Paul’s haunting words: “¹What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound? ² By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it?”  When we can’t stretch beyond ourselves yet alone for the love and mercy of the God of Grace—we justify ourselves and all that we do and say for a graceless gospel written for the world & its ruler--Satan!

We’re no longer hearing the voice of God ascribe to our hearts a faithful calling towards inward change and kingdom thinking… We’ve started a ministry with no purpose, in fact a new nothin’ that’s what we’ve started—the beginning to the end.

Jesus Gospel is simple in some senses here:  Why not a New beginning where the end results are the spiritual gifts from this New Nature?  Why not teach your child something far greater to aspire towards?  What about loving your neighbor?  What about loving a stranger with kindness, compassion, mercy, meekness? Or an even greater uncontrollable, threatening concept: What about accepting over tolerance?

Harboring a “hermeneutic of faith” (which hermeneutic is just a fancy 12 dollar word for perspectives of understanding…) does stir up violence because it goes against the comfort and control the world according to ourselves desires to fester within.  Religious extremists such as ISIS, have distorted this into another direction justifying their evil acts against neighbor in the guise of the “will of God…” Those harboring a hermeneutic or perspective of understanding grounded to culture and the world justify their accomplishments and ego over and above the will of God where His genuine Gospel becomes a side note to their agenda and self-righteousness.

How then can we understand Christ and His gift to us if we are tempted to fall into these categories? Just what have we baptized our lives into?  A commitment to only going so far, to being “politically correct” or being graceless and violent for a cause unto itself.  We are on that thrashing floor, people! Are we to gather or scatter & perish!?

Ministry can’t be done self-contained as an island unto ourselves! Christ Jesus Gospel’ the ministry He has commissioned us to isn’t about institution or buildings…  It is building the Kingdom of God first through inward transformation then outwardly as sharing—loving neighbor with His Word for the sake of Him who died for us!

That voice of John the Baptist crying out into the wilderness of our lives to prepare the Way of the Lord did not do that in vain.  He did that as commissioned by God to herald and teach others of the coming of something, someone wonderful into our world we still have yet to fully, spiritually realize: Jesus Christ, the Messiah! And even then, Christ Jesus greatest gift was yet to be truly revealed through Grace—the New Nature.

It took a man’s conversion to see clearly and live clearly into that perspective of faith to reveal that our battle is very real spiritually…  St. Paul understood this as the battle between the Old and the New Nature.  By the time of Luther, when the church had solidified into an institution hardened to the truth of the Gospel yet alone working towards a goal beyond itself… Luther had to reflect on what his heart saw in St. Paul’s poignant words to realize what we must DO and BE. We must freely be, become servants responsible to the Gospel—dead to the law and alive into a New law—Love.

Just like the radio host mother beginning to teach her child a sense of “how to respond,” we need to truthfully, intentionally respond but with the Gospel according to, centered in, grounded by and for Christ Jesus, the Lord—period! No matter where the world places you in their eyes… whether you feel like that battered boxer in the middle of a deserted field still keeping on, moving forward even when you heart is weary and breaking…  It MUST go on!

For that little cross you hold centered and above your heart is the fuel and mystery of life—passion for something far greater than what the world could ever offer!  Something more precious than any trivia, and trinket the ego can or could inflate…  Truth be told if the ruler of the world had his way—we’d all be living a lie—in the throws of delusions of grandeur for an empty gospel and a life of purely “being” and nothingness.

Let us Pray,

God of Grace, mercy and compassion

You took that seat of mercy for our behalf

Help our hearts to realize the greatest gift given

Help our hearts to truly reap the New Nature

For the Love and Glory of Your Gospel

And for the Love of our neighbors

May we build up a foundation steeped in Hope

Lived intentionally for a greater goal, a far greater purpose

For Your most Holy and Precious Name’s sake—

AMEN

January 10th, 2016; Baptism of Our Lord; Year C; SOLA Lectionary

Sermon by Reverend Nicole A.M. Collins, pos FODM

Psalm 29; Isaiah 43:1-7; Romans 6:1-11 & Luke 3:15-17, 21-22

The link below is from the sermon being delivered at the Grace Hub's house church service at 8am:
https://youtu.be/IdOYRW7Mxik